Oakland, CA resident Stacy Bird is a committed freelance graphic designer who knows her worth. If Stacy has so much as a bad dream about a work mishap, her client is getting billed for that time.
“I can’t have my work life interrupting my beauty sleep,” Stacy shares. “If a second of my eight hours of sleep is interrupted by a nightmare about hex code drama, you’re gonna have to pay for that.”
Sounds like Stacy is a girlboss IRL and in her dreams!
Stacy started billing clients for her night terrors when she was working on a huge project for a tech startup. One night, Stacy broke into a cold sweat and spiraled in distress after having a nightmare that her laptop burst into flames before she submitted her work.
“It was terrifying. It felt so real,” Stacy explains. “When I woke up and realized my laptop was not burnt to a crisp, I knew I had to start sending invoices for any work-related stress dreams. It’s only fair!”
Period, Stacy! Get your money up!
Stacy charges double her usual rate when she has nightmares about work, claiming it’s what she’s owed.
“I will make them pay for making my subconscious become so work oriented,” she shares. “I refuse to allow myself to process requests in my sleep. At least not without getting paid for it.”
This woman does not play when it comes to her hourly rate!
Some of Stacy’s clients have complaints about her nightmare invoices, arguing they can’t control the content of her dreams.
“How am I supposed to know she had a bad dream about making my logo?” says one of Stacy’s former clients. “For all I know, I’m paying her to sleep soundly at night.”
These comments don’t phase Stacy, and she refuses to back down. “The gender pay gap is real! So, if you think about it, my nightmare is just getting me a little closer to an equitable wage. Personally, I think what I’m doing is sleep activism.”
Talk about reclaiming your time! You go, girl!
